Control Journal, Step 11: Basic Weekly Plan

Now that you’ve made pages for all your routines, you’ve completed a whole section of your control journal. Take a divider and label it “Routines” to mark the spot. The next step we’ll do is add our Basic Weekly Plan.

In Step Two of building your Control Journal, you put seven blank pages (labeled for each day of the week) in the Weekly section. These pages are for your Basic Weekly Plan. I want you to think about everything that needs to be done during a full week in your home, then divide your list up into what days you want to do the jobs. For more information about the Basic Weekly Plan, go to the FLYing Lesson about Routines and look at FlyLady’s Basic Weekly Plan.

Weekly Home Blessing Day

This is the day you spend an hour doing basic cleaning in your house. There are seven parts to a Weekly Home Blessing Hour:

Cull/toss old magazines

Change sheets

Empty all the trash

Vacuum all rooms

Mop kitchen and bath

Clean mirrors and doors

Dust

FlyLady likes to do her Weekly Home Blessing Hour on Mondays. Some people bless their home twice a week; others do this on Friday to get ready for the weekend or Saturday morning to get the whole family involved. FlyBabies who work outside of the home may not have a full hour to devote to this, so they do one or two items of our weekly home blessing a day. You can do one before you go to work and one after you get home. With these things penciled on your Basic Weekly Plan, you have a specific time to do them.

Free Day

This is a day to take a break and just do the things you’re supposed to do every day – your routines and the things listed in the daily reminders. Schedule your free day for a day when you generally have a lot going on. FlyLady schedules her Free Day on Tuesdays.

Zone Cleaning, Menu, and Partial Desk Day

This day you should start out by cleaning the refrigerator. This will get rid of any science projects growing in the back, but it also allows us to take inventory of the food that is in there that needs to be used. This way we can integrate this food into our menu plan for next week. We do this the day before we go to the grocery store. It’s a good idea to do this before you go to the grocery store so you don’t buy doubles or forget anything that needs replacing. FlyLady recommends doing this day before your Errands Day.

After you clean out the fridge, this is a great time to make your grocery list and a simple menu plan. You will need to look at your calendar for next week to see what nights you are going to be home for a meal with your family.

Put this on your basic weekly plan for this day:

Clean the refrigerator

Make a menu for the next week

Write a grocery list

Balance the checkbook before shopping

Errand Day

This is the day you plan to do all the things you need to do outside of your home, such as grocery shopping (especially grocery shopping!), picking up prescriptions, hair cuts, dropping off library books, and so on. FlyLady’s errand day is Thursday. You should pick a day of the week that will work best for you.

On the page for that day, list the places you need to go every week (post office, drug store, grocery store, etc.). Put the sheet in a shiny sheet protector and use a dry-erase marker to check off each place you’ve gone. Be sure to leave enough space at the bottom of the page to add appointments or errands that aren’t weekly, like doctor’s appointments or hair cuts.

Paperwork/”Clean Out” Day & Date Night

This is the day we tie up any loose ends. FlyLady likes doing this on Friday, because it’s quick to do but necessary, which leaves plenty of time to start the weekend.

This is the day you should be sure to mail off any bills, deposit checks in the bank, file any important documents (such as bills or receipts), write letters, and so on. Also, this is the day FlyLady recommends cleaning out your car, your purse, and your laundry room. Throw away any garbage and make sure any misplaced items are put back in their place that way you can start the weekend right. While doing this, pull out the food you’ll need from your pantry or freezer for next week’s menu so you’ll be prepared when the busy week sets in!

This is also what FlyLady likes to call Date Night. Plan a nice activity for you and your significant other or a friend to enjoy later in the evening — or one just for yourself!

Weekend

Your plans for the weekends are up to you to decide. You may want to plan fun weekly activities for your kids or schedule time for you to go to something on your own.

Saturday is “Family Fun Day” – enjoy the day with your family!

Sunday is “Renew Your Spirit Day” – relax and reflect on the past week, as well as what is to come.

Once you have created your basic weekly plan, you’re ready for step twelve!